Oz critics salute The Babadook

After tying for best film with The Water Diviner at the AACTA Awards, Jennifer Kent’s The Babadook has won the major prizes at the Australian Film Critics Association annual film and writing awards.

The horror movie took the awards for best film, director, lead actress Essie Davis and supporting actor Noah Wiseman.

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Emulating his AACTA Award, David Gulpilil was named best actor for Charlie’s Country. Sarah Snook (who was recognised as best actress for Predestination at the AACTAs) was the surprise winner for best supporting actress for These Final Hours.

Gulpilil and Rolf de Heer collected the original screenplay award and Charlie’s Country’s Ian Jones was feted as best DoP. Gulpilil received his best actor statue on Friday evening from Aaron Pedersen (last year's AFCA best actor winner for Mystery Road) during the BlakNite event at Treasury Gardens. He dedicated the award to “the spirit of the country and his family.”

Wes Anderson’s The Grand Budapest Hotel was judged best English-language international film and the Dardenne brothers’ Two Days, One Night the best foreign-language international film.

The documentary prize went to Jodorowsky's Dune, directed by Frank Pavich, which explores Chilean-French director Alejandro Jodorowsky's unsuccessful attempt to adapt and film Frank Herbert's 1965 science fiction novel Dune in the mid-1970s.

Hosted by comedian Tegan Higgenbotham, the awards were handed out on Saturday night at ACMI in Melbourne's Federation Square.

THE 2015 AFCA FILM AWARD WINNERS

(Nominations and winners are generated through a two-stage voting process involving all AFCA members.)

The Australian Film Critics Association annually award prizes to the best Australian film criticism across four categories.

1. Ivan Hutchinson Award for writing on Australian cinema. ($500)
2. Award for writing on non-Australian cinema. ($500)
3. Award for a review of an individual Australian film. ($200)
4. Award for a review of an individual non-Australian film. ($200)